Give A Friend A Gift (Don’t Let Go)

Morrisey - Hold On To Your Friends

I live in my head. I send myself flowers on special occasions. I slaughter cows in India. I buy $300 worth of champagne flutes not for company, but in order to avoid running the dishwasher for a week. I keep to myself.

Even in my head.

I haven’t always lived there, but something has been missing from my life for the past year, and introspection, imagination, and other ‘i’ words seemed to make more sense than attempting to meet new people.

Which brings me to Marcy, the remarkably wise woman who runs Lost In Your Inbox. When I read what she had to say about friendship it forced me to reflect upon what I considered essential to my stability and wellbeing.

“When I think about it, I realize that the relationships I enjoy the most or the times in my life I remember most fondly are the ones in which I could really be myself. The people with whom I am free to be all aspects of me, no matter how wacky or sad or stupid or sarcastic. I think that’s part of what I long for when I feel like something is missing from my life, those places and people with whom I can let it all hang out.”

This is not to say I haven’t good friends in this town. I do. But those who’ve stood the test of time across thousands of miles? Well, I want those around as well.

I need at least one.

Which is why, now that I’m moving to New York with two of my closest comrades, I feel lighter than I have in months, years even.

I feel happy.

I’m a firm believer in the notion that friends are the family you choose. Speaking of which, the picture above is of our new home. Thank you, Google Maps.

[Buy Morrisey]

UPDATE: THE POP FILTER IS MOVING…TO NEW YORK!

“Talent is luck. The important thing in life is courage” - Woody Allen

Two years ago that line from Manhattan, and one Wilco song (can you guess which one?), inspired me to dedicate my life to film. I’m a filmmaker. Did I ever mention that? This move to New York is the next step, albeit a rather significant one, in a series of inevitable steps.

I assure you this website will do nothing if not reap the many benefits of such a move.

I also flitted between songs in an earnest attempt to marry this announcement to “the sound of opportunity.” In the end, I settled on silence.

This is a moment for heartbeats, both yours and mine.

I’ve lived in Florida my entire life. Here’s to something new, something stupid and magnificent.

Big News…Come Monday!

Shy Child - Astronaut

Greetings, Pop Filter readers!

I’m off on a short trip only to return Monday with very exciting news. No, really. I mean it.

Very. Exciting. News.

It’s probably the second-biggest update in store for the site, and trust me, it’s a big update!

Blast off is in T-12 hours.

Stay well, and stay tuned!

[Buy Shy Child]

Barack Obama’s Position On FISA Bill Based On Enormous Gamble

Nick Cave and Warren Ellis - The Proposition #1

Okay, so the FISA bill passed. Barack Obama supported it. People have other issues to contend with. It’s time to move on, right?

Well, no, it isn’t. Obama posted an explanation to his position on FISA over a week ago (reprinted here on The Huffington Post). The following excerpt worries me most (emphasis added):

Given the choice between voting for an improved yet imperfect bill, and losing important surveillance tools, I’ve chosen to support the current compromise. I do so with the firm intention — once I’m sworn in as president — to have my Attorney General conduct a comprehensive review of all our surveillance programs, and to make further recommendations on any steps needed to preserve civil liberties and to prevent executive branch abuse in the future.

My question is simple: what happens if Obama loses? What are the implications of this bill if John McCain “triumphs?” People can point to Obama’s donation numbers, grassroots support, poll results, momentum, etc, all they want, but what happens if, come election day, John McCain wins?

In short, the FISA bill will grant McCain the power to do almost anything he desires with regards to domestic surveillance. Remember what Chris Dodd said about “illegal, unwarranted, unchecked domestic surveillance?” Yeah, well imagine that in the hands of John McCain. Imagine it across every conceivable communication platform — telephone, Internet, GPS units — and the picture begins to look quite grim. Terrifyingly so.

I support Obama. I will continue to support Obama. However, I deeply fear the repercussions of this bill under a McCain administration over the course of four years. I can only guess as to what other liberties Obama will surrender in the upcoming months with the promise of amending past wrongs once elected.

Needless to say, I’m less than comfortable.

Kind intentions aren’t something I typically put much stock in.

[Buy The Proposition OST]

She & Him, Just Like Me & You (Except Better)

She & Him - I Thought I Saw Your Face Today

I’ve fallen hard. Busted teeth. Bloodied knuckles. Just to get to you.

Come back, Miranda. We’re not as far apart as one would think. Distance is but an illusion, a bitter destitution. God, that was awful. I’d do it again, though. Just say the word. I’ll climb through rubbish, over monuments of spittle and kind intentions. I’ll punch a brigadier in the face. Do you hear me? In the face. I’ll butcher quotes; I’ll condemn your literary heroes to paraphrasing and a drunken grope, mispronunciations and a lack of attribution. I’ll claim the world as my own. And I couldn’t help but fall in love again. With you.

It may have been your jaw, the way it sagged and spoke of nights spent unhinged, wrapped around bottles and strokes of rotten luck. Can you blame me, Miranda? It’s no one’s fault. Those bruises are no one’s fault. Chipped nails and the scent of Bourbon. Raspberry lotion. Lemon-scented hand sanitizer for later in the evening, earlier in the morning.

Keep me awake, Miranda. I fear if I fall I’ll fall too hard. I’ll do back flips frontwise. I’m no contortionist. Don’t ruin me, please. Keep me whole. Keep me from twisting into a series of inevitable sprains. I’ve busted teeth, Miranda. Whole teeth are now little more than tales to tell the barkeep, shards to rattle in brown prescription bottles filled with alcohol. All for you.

And I couldn’t help but fall in love again.

[Buy She & Him, Myspace]